Highly classified files that take you into the life and times of Laura
Larsen
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This
page is in the works, but this is a link to my mission
page
Pictures from my return home March 17, 2004
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What
I learned on my mission
Well I had a good time on my mission. There are a lot of things which
I learned. I learned how to speak a little bit of German. To stand on
boxes on street corners and preach to the street. How to live with someone
24/7 and one of the most important, I learned how to love others.
Before my mission I was reading in the scriptures and I read a chapter
that changed my life. It was Moroni 7. These verses people know rather
well verse 47-48. As I read this it made me realize how important it was
to have charity. I wanted to have more of it. I wanted to help other people.
That was one of the reasons that I went on a mission. One thing on a mission
you really learn a lot about is this love and how important it is to help
others.
In Düsseldorf there was a young 12 year old
girl that we taught. Her name is Melanie Just. We actually started to
visit her mother who had not been coming very often. Well Melanie started
to come in and sit in our meetings. We saw that she started to be interested
and we asked her if she would like to know more. She said yes, with a
shocked look on her face. Her mother was so excited that she wanted
to know more she pulled out all of the things from when she was taught.
They worked on it together. It helped them to become closer together as
a family.
At first when I met Melanie she was really shy, not sure of herself ,was
very kept back. She would not talk with us very much in our meetings, she
would never pray or read out loud, but then something started to happen.
She was pushed a little, she prayed she found out it was true. Melanie
started to change she opened up. As she went to Young Womens she talked,
she got friends, she was happier. She wasn’t afraid anymore to be involved
and voluntarily
did things. She really changed and she helped
her mother in the same time.
In the beginning of my mission I was having some hard times. I found a
scripture that helped me out a lot It is in Isaiah 41.10. It helped me
to know that my Father in Heaven is always with me and I need not fear.
| Well in Bonn there was a young mother. Her name is Meriam. She left her home land and her 3 year old son to come to Germany and raise money for her family. When she first got here, she was having a really hard time. She had not been active back at home and she came to live with her sisters. |  |
They told us to come over to help her. I read Meriam this scripture and told
her how it had helped me and not to worry. She loved it and always read
it and also showed it to others. She started to become active again and
would even come on splits with us. It was such a great experience. The
power of scripture is wonderful.
In my mission we taught people from everywhere.
It is such a different kind of culture mission. I needed to know 10 languages
that I didn't. We taught people from Russia, Africa, Turkey, Poland, China
and many people from Ecuador.
| In my second city, Bonn, there were many families from Ecuador. We had a Spanish speaking class there. One family that we were teaching was the Ortiz family. |  |
Carlos had been a member for a year and his wife was not. She would come to church sometimes, she would read sometimes and she had heard the discussions a few times but she would never commit to anything. Well when I came to Bonn, Carlos started to invite us over for dinner every week. After a few times Indira decided that she would hear the discussions again. She didn't seem to happy about it and was held back. It was fun to teach her. She could understand German a little but could not speak it very well.
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Carlos could speak a little better and would try and translate for us. It was so hard at first and she didn't seem that she was making progress. |
Well shortly after this her mother died. She had it hard and we taught
her again about the temple and that she would see her family again. She
was a little nervous about the temple, but we told her she should really
pray about these things we had taught her. Well awhile later as she was
reading in the Book of Mormon. She remembered about the testimonies that
we bore to her about prayer and she decided to pray about it. She got
her answer. She had a burning in her heart and from that day on it was
totally different. She was open to everything. She wanted to know more
about the temple, she wanted to marry her husband there when before she
was scared to. She loved reading and she seemed like she had always been
a member. I loved watching there family grow closer together and the Joy
that they had.
Near the beginning of my mission I had an interesting experience with blessings. We had an investigator Frau Klink. She had
met the church through her sister. She wanted to get baptized, but her
husband wouldn't let her. She was very strong and came to church and participated
all that she could. Well then came a hard time. 3 weeks in a row that
she never came. We got really concerned about her and called her and asked
her. She said she couldn't talk about it now, but not to worry it had nothing
to do with church that she hadn't been there and she wanted a blessing.
Well the next Sunday she came early. We still had no idea what was wrong,
but she got a blessing of trust and comfort. Well the young man who was
giving her the blessing promised her something. He said the problems she
was having would go away just as quickly as they had come. I thought that
was neat. Then I found out the problem. She was pregnant again and her
husband didn't want anymore children and wanted a divorce. I thought to
myself ok how is that promise going to be answered. Well we fasted and
prayed for her and she moved out of her home and was prepared to have
this baby by herself. Well after awhile she decided that she would call
him back one more time to talk to him. When Frau Klink did he asked her
to come back and afterwards was more open to the church. Through this experience
it has helped me to really know that the priesthood holders
really are inspired from God and our Father in Heaven really keeps his
promises.
| I actually have a favorite day on my mission. It was my year mark. Me and my companion, Sister Jakob, had both came out the same day and were celebrating our year mark together. |  |
Well we had a goal set for that day that we would get to baptismal dates. We start of that morning and taught a young man named Carlos from Africa. We taught him about the principles of the gospel and explained the baptism to him. Sister Jakob gave her testimony on the importance of it and asked him if he would be baptized and he said yes. Well shortly after that we went to our next appointment. It was a young mother from Russia. Her grandmother had just died and we taught her about the plan of salvation and that she would see her grandmother again. We then also taught her about baptism and It was my turn to tell her how important baptism is to me. I then asked her if she would be baptized and she said yes. I loved that day. After this appointment we went out and we thanked god for helping us bring some more of his children to him.
| You never know who's lives you touch. When I was in Bonn we had a stake conference and had to go to Düsseldorf my first city. Well as I was there I noticed a lady talking with the sister missionaries. |  |
I knew I knew her. I went up to her and said, "Do you remember me?" She looked at me with a very happy face and gave me a big hug. She said yes you are the first missionary I talked to. I had met Sabine on the street and talked to her and her boyfriend. I had gotten her number and the elders met with them a few times, but then they stopped and she moved. Well she told me that after a while she broke up with her boyfriend and she wanted to change her life. She was walking on the street and saw some missionaries standing on the street, she ran up to them and said that she wanted them to come over and the sister missionaries started meeting with her again. She said she is very happy now and is so excited about what the sisters are teaching her and that it has changed her. You never know who you will touch.
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There were many people that touched my life in the cities I served in.. In Düsseldorf there was an older lady named Sister Kutscke.. She was in her 80's.She was always in and out of the Hospital. We would see her on the street. |
We would often wonder why she was out. She would always hobble along on her little crutches. We would ask her where she was going. She would say. I heard someone was in need of my help and I am going to help them. It didn't matter that she was sick, she new someone need help so she went to help them.
| Another lady in Bonn I really looked up to. Her name was Danielle. She was from Romania. She lived in a run down part of town, with three kids to feed and her husband was hardly ever there. She was so kind and would always offer us, bread, fruit and veggies and milk. |  |
She wanted to help us out and would with all that
she had. It didn't matter that she didn't have much. She helped out. It
made me realize that I wanted that kind of Charity.
Well at the end of my mission I was having a bit of trouble. The last
night I was in shock. I couldn't believe that it was over. I just sat and
thought to myself it is through and it made me really depressed. Well
I prayed to my Father in Heaven for comfort and I had this wonderful feeling
come to me. I realized that I am only done teaching people and helping
those around me when I want to be. This is only a new part in my life.
I still have that chance to share with all the people I know about this
special message that I know to be true. We have so many friends out there
that know us. They know that we are members of this church, but do they
really know what it is. Do they really know what it means to you and the
truths that you know.. We are all brothers and sisters and I know that
the best thing in the world would be to see all of us with our Father
in Heaven and to be able to help those that mean the most to us to make
it back to him.